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Mineral Resources

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Vocabulary

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ore- a mineral-bearing rock
gemstone- a colorful mineral with a glassy luster
alloy- a substance that holds two or more metals
smelting- to melt ores in order to separate the metallic components

Outline

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The Uses of Minerals

• people are surrounded by minerals everyday
  • such as the metal body and glass windows of a car
• minerals are the source of metals, gems, and other useful things
• Gemstones
  • people value the gemstone for its luster and durability
  • it is also rare
    • once a gemstone is cut and polished, it is called a gem
  • they are commonly used for mechanical parts and for grinding and polishing
• Metals
  • some minerals that are used as as metals are aluminum, iron, copper, and silver
    • they are useful because they can be stretched into wire or hammered or molded without breaking
  • even the small figment in a light bulb began as a mineral in Earth's crust
• Other Useful Minerals
  • minerals are in food, medicines, and fertilizers
    • talc is used to make talcum powder
    • flourite is the key to making aluminum and steel

Ores

• most metals don't occur in a pure form
• the metal occurs as a mineral that is mixed with that metal and other elements

Prospecting

• a prospector is someone who looks for something
• geologists are considered to be prospectors
  • they observe what kind of rocks are on the Earth's crust
    • they observe plants growing in an area and test stream water to see if they have any chemicals in it

Mining

• ore deposit maps help miners decide how to mine the ore from the ground
• there are three types of mines: strip mines, open-pit mines, and shaft mines
  • strip mines
    • earthmoving equipment to scrape away soil and expose ore
  • open-pit mines
    • miners use giant equipment to dig a hole to remove ore deposits that might be close to the surface
  • shaft mines
    • these mines use big tunnels that go deep into the surface following veins of ore
• strip mining hurts the environment
  • to recover land hurt by strip mining, miners substitute the soil

Smelting

• after miners get the ores from mining, it is required to put the through the process of smelting
• the process of smelting is very interesting
  • the high temperature melts the metal inside of the ore
    • the temperature also makes the metal separate from the oxygen in which it is combined
  • metalworkers pour of the molten metal from the ores
• after the process of smelting, processing is needed to take away impurities form the iron
  • the aftereffect of the process is steel
• for stronger steel, a little bit of carbon is added

type of mine	what it does
strip mine	earthmoving equipment scrape the soil and reveal ore
open-pit mine	giant equipment dig a massive hole and to remove ore deposits
shaft mines	have a network of tunnels that follow veins of ore